February, 
1913 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
145 
the first requisites is fresh, reliable spawn. 
This can be obtained from reliable seeds¬ 
men or from certain mushroom spawn 
dealers in different parts of the United 
States. The usual price is $2 for enough 
spawn for thirty square feet. 
“Mushrooms may be grown in a shed, 
cave, cellar or any vacant space in a green¬ 
house, if the temperature and moisture 
conditions are favorable. The tempera¬ 
ture should range from 53 0 to 6o°, 55 0 to 
58° being best. The place should not be 
very damp, though a moist atmosphere is 
desirable. Cold is less injurious than heat. 
That is why many mushroom houses are 
built half below the ground, so that there 
is less trouble in keeping down the tem¬ 
perature. Mushrooms are usually grown 
in early spring or summer, and in the fall 
and early winter, but in proper houses 
they may be produced the year around. 
The color of the product is much improved 
by darkness, but a little light may be al¬ 
lowed to harvest the mushrooms and work 
in the bed. 
“The manure must be in the primary 
stage of fermentation, and should not con¬ 
tain more than a moderate amount of 
straw or such substitutes as sawdust or 
shavings. It should first be piled in a heap 
three or four feet high, and if dry should 
be watered slightly to start fermentation. 
In four or five days it should be turned, 
and again in seven or ten days to permit 
of even fermentation and prevent burning 
in spots. In fifteen days or three weeks 
the temperature will begin to fall and it 
will be ready for use. 
“The beds are usually three and a half 
by four feet and ten or twelve inches deep, 
with boards outside to hold the manure. 
The compost should be just moist — a state 
when water can not readily be squeezed 
out. Layers of four to six inches should 
be put in and packed slightly. The tem¬ 
perature should be allowed to fall to 75 0 
before the spawn is put in. 
“Commercial spawn comes in bricks 
which are cut or broken into two-inch 
squares, ten or twelve pieces to the brick. 
These are put ten inches apart an inch 
under the surface of the manure. It is 
usually unnecessary to water the beds 
after spawning, which almost invariably 
damps off the young spawn. If in two 
weeks there are no white threads in the 
manure about the spawn a layer of loam 
not too heavy nor too light, about an inch 
and a half deep may be spread over the 
surface. It should be barely moist, to 
prevent the bed from drying out. 
“When the mushrooms appear the bed 
may be sprinkled lightly once or twice a 
week, but never soaked. The walks and 
walls of the house may be watered to keep 
the atmosphere moist. The mushrooms 
usually appear some six weeks after 
spawning. In picking, the cap, or cap and 
stem, should be grasped and twisted to 
remove easily from the soil. All de¬ 
fective ones and the small ‘buttons’ should 
be removed. Shipment is made in small 
boxes similar to strawberry boxes or in 
Grimm’s Galvanized Corrugated Wire Lathing 
requires no furring on account 
of the V-shaped corrugations 
which are imbedded at intervals 
of seven inches. 
This feature alone is worth 
considering, but that’s not all. 
It WILL NOT RUST as it is 
heavily galvanized with the fin¬ 
est grade of Western Spelter, 
and is much easier to handle and 
will conform to irregular curves 
much better than any other form 
of metal or wood lath. 
Walls or ceilings plastered on 
this lathing WILL NOT 
CRACK OR DROP OFF, ow¬ 
ing to its great keying quali¬ 
ties, which we will explain if 
you will drop us a card asking 
for our booklet No. 61. 
“Note the V” 
Our general catalog will also 
be mailed free upon request, which describes our entire line, such as Greening’s Patent Trussed 
Steel Wire Lathing, Buffalo Crimped Wire Concrete Reinforcing, Wire Cloth of all kinds and 
Wire and Artistic Metal Work for all purposes. DROP US A LINE AT ONCE. 
BUFFALO WIRE WORKS COMPANY 
464 TERRACE 
FORMERLY SCHEELER S SONS 
BUFFALO, N. Y. 
The Practical Worlii 
’ Sure to know the~Reaaon WJty' 
:r lake a Srd 
UVr-me st mped indelibly on every 
/oot) 
The man who builds a house without 
asking about the sash-cord to be used 
is laying up trouble for himself. In¬ 
sist that the specifications mention 
SILVER LAKE A. Its smooth sur¬ 
face offers nothing on whioh the 
pulley can catch. Guaranteed for 
Twenty years. 
Write for Free Booklet , 
SILVER LAKE COMPART 
87 Chauncy St., 
Boston, Mass. 
Makers of SILVER 
LAKE solid braided 
o 1 o t h e s 
lines. 
Samson Spot Clothes Line 
SOLID BRAIDED COTTON 
Strong, Durable, Flexible 
Will not kink, stretch, ravel, nor stain the 
clothes. Guaranteed to last at least five years, 
even when permanently exposed to the weather. 
Can be distinguished at a glance by our trade¬ 
mark, The Spots on the Cord. 
Send for sample. Carried by all dealers, or write to us. 
SAMSON CORDAGE WORKS, BOSTON, MASS. 
Is Your Refrigerator 
Poisoning Your Family? 
Y OUR doctor will tel 1 
you that a refrigera¬ 
tor which cannot be 
kept clean and whole- 
some, as you can easily 
keep the Monroe, is al¬ 
ways dangerous to your 
family. 
The Monroe is the 
Only Refrigerator 
With Genuine Solid 
Porcelain Food 
Compartments. 
Never 
SSoldln 
Stores 
Monroe" 
which can be kept free of breeding 
places for disease germs that poison 
food which in turn poisons people. 
Not cheap porcelain-enamel, but one 
piece of white unbreakable porcelain 
ware over an inch thick—nothing to 
crack, chip, or absorb moisture—as 
easily cleaned as a china bowl— 
every corner rounded—not a single 
crack, joint or any other lodging place 
for dirt and the germs of disease and 
decay. Send at once for 
FREE BOOK 
frigerators 
which explains all this and tells you 
how to materially reduce the high 
cost of living—how to have better, 
more nourishing food—how to keep 
food longer without spoiling—how to 
cut down ice bills—how to guard 
against sickness—doctor’s bills. 
Monroe Refrigerator Co., Sta. 
30 Days’ Trial 
Factory Price 
Cash or Credit 
Direct from fac¬ 
tory to you — saving 
you store profits. 
We pay freight and 
guarantee your 
money back and 
removal of refrig¬ 
erator at no ex¬ 
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are not absolutely 
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Easy terms if 
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book NOW —Letter 
or postal. 
4B, Lo^kJand .Ohio- 
Livingston’s Tomatoes 
are valued by all friends of this fruit as the choicest 
procurable. For sixty years we have bred tomatoes 
for yield and quality and our new “globe” shaped 
sorts are as near perfection as anything evolved. Of 
ideal shape with solid meat of finest flavor, they stand 
unsurpassed. 
Trial Packet of Livingston’s “Globe” Illustrated 
below (enough seeds for 250 plants) 10c. postpaid 
Useful 130 page Catalog rnrr 
and Tomato Booklet F 
Nearly 300 illustrations from photographs and 
honest description make the catalog one of tbe most 
reliahlp seed books nublished. “Tomato Facts” ex- 
> Both books are "free. May we 
The Livingston Seed Co. 
186 High Street 
COLUMBUS 
OHIO 
In writing to advertisers please mention House and Garden. 
